We place a lot of stories and information in this publication that feature leadership programs, people who are proven leaders and many other individuals with varying degrees of leadership.
From a young age, we begin to learn what a good leader might or might not look like. With a plethora of leadership style quizzes, personal and professional development meetings and even entertainment in TV shows, books and movies aimed at motivating us to leadership, there is no shortage of material out there for us to glean.
I have been fortunate this year to begin one of those leadership programs myself: the Governor Dolph Briscoe Jr. Texas Agricultural Lifetime Leadership (TALL) Program. This specific program is focused on developing future Texas leaders, increasing and enhancing knowledge on all aspects of agriculture from food to fiber, policy to law and the economy and society’s role throughout.
Over the next two years, we will have six sessions across the state of Texas, one session in the Northeast, one in California and one international session in Belgium and Spain to culminate the program. Our 24-person cohort will be exposed to so many people in the industry with a wealth of knowledge amongst them, and I am looking forward to learning all I can along the way.
Our first session was held in College Station, Texas, as TALL is a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension program. This was special to me since my dad’s side of the family is from that Bryan-College Station area and is still very focused in agriculture. We had about 40 hours of training in a 3.5-day span, and I certainly gained a lot from listening to all of the different speakers.
We started off with multiple insightful speakers and an etiquette dinner on Day 1. Day 2 was packed full with more successful speakers discussing everything from the state’s most pressing veterinarian issues, to U.S. and world policy and a Farm Bill update, to Extension’s role in state research flourishing; two great farm headquarters visits; a facility tour of Wayne Sanderson Farms; and a very interesting tour and dinner at STgenetics, an innovative livestock reproductive services company.
My biggest takeaway was when someone asked what the biggest challenge is that we’re facing in the state and country. Dr. Joe Outlaw, regents fellow, professor, Extension economist and policy extraordinaire, as I like to say, at Texas A&M University, responded quickly with “an uninformed and apathetic public on where their food comes from.” I’ve known it for a while, but it always hits me how critical my line of work in journalism and publishing can be in the overall success and progression of agriculture. It can be difficult thinking you’re just writing things down or sharing information someone else said, but it’s important to remember not everyone is informed on XYZ topic or that they may see a new side to something that motivates them to try something new or share that information to even more people.
One of my highlights from Day 3 was visiting Producers Cooperative Association in Bryan, Texas, the largest member-owned cooperative in Texas. We had a great tour of their feed and supply divisions and were treated to a panel with their senior leadership. I was extremely impressed with their team and how thorough they were in making sure we got all the information we could want while being there and how they are staunch champions and defenders of ag. A theme of urbanization breaking up farms came up and added to our ongoing theme of agricultural land loss. Their CEO Mr. James Deatheredge made the point that “we haven’t taught the younger generation where their food and fiber originates.” This was another great reminder of how crucial good communication and education are for the future of agriculture.
Day 4 was a culmination of our first week with everything from a Forest Service overview to an in-depth look at current international affairs at the Bush School of Government and Public Policy, so there was still no shortage of information shared and gathered. Our second session will be in Lubbock and Amarillo, and I believe we are all looking forward to it.
I am immensely grateful to be part of a program that values agriculture, community and leadership, and I can’t wait to see what lies ahead.
— Cassidy Nemec
Hewitt, Texas
cnemec@onegrower.com